The Osceola times., 1887-03-12
WRECKED IN A wASHOUT.

haps Two Lives, Lost-Miraculous Escape
Of the Rest Of the Impsriled Passengers.
ST LOUIS, March IA serious wreck,
caused by a washout, occurred at Joachim
creek, on the Iron Mountain railroad Sat
urday night. by which two persons lost
their lives and several were more or less
seriously injured.
The dead were: Henry Byron, aged
about thirty wears, an unmarried resident
of De Soto. Mo, and an unknown man,
whose body was carried away in the rush
ing waters of the creek, which caused the
washout and the accident.
The injured, 80 far as ascertained, were
as follows:
Vato Almeyer, Columbus, O.; serious
contusions about the head and body.
Anton Patclla, Italy, laborer, passen-
ger for Texarkana; contusions about the
face, head and lower limbs.
Frank Burns. St Louis one Of the bag
gage-masters; slight cut in the face.
Lou Kelley, engineer; severe contusions
abb ut the face and body and toes OF LETT
foot crushed and badly bruised.
Fran Hatch, De Soto, fireman; several
painful contusicns of the back and body.
H Baldwin, jamestown, n Y; cut in
hand and wrist
JH Titcomb, San Jose, Cal left hand
cut.
s.P. Beck, Point Burnside, KY; con-
tusions about head and face.
William Fontaine, news agent on the
ira n; contusions about the head and
face.
The body of Mr.. Byron was found in the
smolxing-car af er the w ter had subsided.
He had been drowned and was not
bruised or mutilated in anv way. The
body was allowed TO remain in the coach
until three o'clock in the afternoon OF yes
tei day. when il was taken to De Soto and
given in charge of the company's under
taker, Mr. Robert Coxwell. The unknown
body was not recovered, II supposedly
having been washed awav in the flood.
Those persons injured were given the
necessary medical attention, and some OF
them were brought to St. Louis and sent
TO the Missouri Pacific hospital for treat
ment
HERO OF THE WRECK:
p H. Fitzgerald one of the passengers,
said: ~ am a conductor, formerly from
the New York a. New England railroad,
but for the past two years and half have
been a conductor on the St. Louis, Iron
Mountain a. S ,uthern railroad was on
my way home from st. Louis to Bismarck,
where | reside. Just before we ran
on the trestle was sitting
in a seat talking with Joe Guion, the con-
ductor of the train, and George Herbert
conductor Of the local freight, who was
going home TO spend Sunday, after taking
his run into ST. Louis Saturday evening.
We were talking about the high water,
and Herbert said it would be wonder II
we did not have some wrecks tonight
He had only finished saying this when the
shock came, and Guion said: we have
got it now,' and he turned to me and said !:
Goodbye Fitz,' and we shook hands and
parted to save ourselves as best we could.
As soon as | saw the water we started
back through the car. All the other pas
sengers had left their seats In wild confu-
sion, and when found could not pass
along the aisle | climbed over the backs OF
the seats and called out: Break out the
windows and 90 out at the side kicked
out window when the water was up to
my waist and climbed on the window sill,
but could not reach to climb on top, until
Conductor Guion, who had followed the
same course Of action, had succeeded in
reaching the top of the car (because
he was taller and could reach the ventila-
tori gave me his assistance. then heard
Herbert call my name from the end OF the
car which wa deepest in the water, say
ing; 'Fitz, for Gods sake, help me outP
succeeded in getting him on top, and he
then held my hand while pulled up three
others from the same car. and some one
else helped me pull up two more from that
side
We then went to the other side, where
we rescued four more in the same way
There were twelve of us on the top of the
car, and we were fifty feet from land.
The water must have been at least ten fe II
deep. Conductor Guion and | consulted
what we should do. | asked him If he
could swim aud he only said: It's bad
case
took Of all my heavy clothes three
times 20 swim out but others said wait.
Guion asked: Can you get to shore,
Ftzr and ] answered, yes; | can make
it, Finally wh,n the car commence TO
roll and swing down with the current as
if il was about to jump and swim ashore.
and, before doing so, we shook hands and
said good bye He jumped and ! fol-
lowed him Gnion eau rht a limb of a
tree and succe dei in climbing into the
tree and got from there to shore. | did
not catch the tree but went down with
the current some 4 stance and succeeded
in swimming to shore. 1t was a broken
aid very rapid current l was fol-
lowed by Con actor Herbert and pas
senger Herbert caught in the tree and
the passenger followed me to shore.
We then got the bell rope TO
the car by throwing the rope to
Herbert in the tree and he threw IL to the
car where it was made fast. We first sent
an axe over the rope to the car and cut a
hole in the top of the car All the passen-
gers were landed by this rope and raft,
which was made afterward, except one
man, who was drowned in the car and
who is the only one positively
known to have perished. As
soon as we got to the top of the car we
called to those at the rear of the tram 10
go back and flag the Belmont train, which
was following close, and saw the brake
man go back After we got the passen-
gers off the top of the smoker, the brake
man came to me and said Engineer Kelley
and his fireman, Hatch, were down the
stream on tree. He had heard them call
ing when he came in after flaggin ng No.
COS. We got ladder from a farm house
and tied plank to the ladder and
swan with 1t and brought the fireman
in from among some bushes, and after
ward made seven different attempts, and
finally succeeded with the assistance of
another man, whose name do not know,
but he is the section foreman at Hema-
tite,) in rescuing passenger named
Beck, who was lodged in a tree. About
this time assistance came from DeSoto,
and the work Of rescuing those in danger.
Commissioners Chosen.
BosToS, March IA " ashington special
10 the Herald says that IL is understood
that the President has definitely deter